March 17, 2015, 5:06PM

New Orleans City Councilman James Gray said Tuesday (March 17) that the Supreme Court's decision to suspend his law license won't damage his effectiveness as an elected lawmaker. "The allegations and fines have nothing to do with, first of all, my honesty nor my New Orleans city council work," Gray said in an interview with NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. "It has... Full story »

March 17, 2015, 2:55PM

UPDATE: Gray said Tuesday after this story posted that his suspension will not hamper his work on the council. Here is a more-detailed story with the latest information. The Louisiana Supreme Court has suspended New Orleans Councilman James Gray from practicing law for two years. The ruling, handed down Tuesday (March 17), followed the advice of the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board.... Full story »

March 05, 2015, 6:22PM

Transportation for students to New Orleans' public schools is in an abysmal state, plagued by skyrocketing costs and placing bus-riding schoolchildren in harm's way, according the latest findings of a working group established to study the issue. The group delivered its discoveries to the City Council Thursday (March 5), which had ordered the study after a six-year-old boy was struck and... Full story »

October 20, 2014, 3:51PM

Endorsements in New Orleans political races by elected officials are by no means unusual, but an elected official rescinding one certainly is. That's what City Councilwoman LaToya Cantrell did last week, signing an affidavit Oct. 18 that stated she was pulling her support for Civil District Court Judge Lloyd Medley's re-election effort. In the same move, she threw her weight... Full story »

October 13, 2014, 2:26PM

The Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board has recommended that New Orleans City Councilman James Gray lose his law license for two years for ignoring the needs of his clients and obstructing an investigation into his alleged wrongdoing. Gray exhibited a "pattern of misconduct" and "knowingly violated duties owed to his clients," the board stated in its report. Those failures caused one... Full story »

August 21, 2014, 2:33PM

The New Orleans City Council has followed through with its protest against Sheriff Marlin Gusman's proposal to build a 764-bed addition to the Orleans Parish Prison complex that would house sick and mentally ill inmates. With a 6-0 vote, city lawmakers passed a resolution Thursday (Aug. 21) that calls on Gusman to renovate the fourth floor of a 1,438-bed building... Full story »

August 21, 2014, 9:55AM

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and Councilman James Gray will hold a community meeting Thursday (Aug. 21) to discuss spending priorities ahead of the adoption of a budget for 2015. NOLA.com | The Times picayune will provide live updates in this post when the discussion starts. The meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Greater St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist... Full story »

August 15, 2014, 10:05AM

New Orleans Councilman James Gray on Thursday (Aug. 14) said a recent court ruling won't delay the development of a planned mixed-use project in the historic Holy Cross neighborhood. The court had ruled that the ordinance allowing for the development is invalid because the city failed to attach a "concept plan" to the the legislation, a requirement according to the city's... Full story »

June 30, 2014, 5:52PM

As the impact of bullets wounding 10 people on a popular block of Bourbon Street early Sunday continues to reverberate throughout New Orleans, city lawmakers expressed either measured outrage or said nothing at all Monday. City Council members Jared Brossett, Jason Williams and Nadine Ramsey considered the shootings a clarion call to turn a more critical eye toward management... Full story »

April 30, 2014, 8:42AM

New Orleans' next roster of elected officials will raise their right hands on stage at the opulent Saenger Theater on Monday (May 5), signaling the start of a popular mayor's second and final term at the helm and welcoming three new City Council members to the City Hall chamber dais. The swearing-in ceremony will also usher into office the... Full story »

April 24, 2014, 6:46PM

The city council's decision to delay a vote on a controversial development on the site of the old Holy Cross School campus in the Lower 9th Ward won't jeopardize the project's future, according Councilman James Gray, whose district includes the neighborhood. Perez APC, the developer on the project, has a purchase agreement in place with the school, but it's... Full story »

March 26, 2014, 2:08PM

A committee with the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommended March 25 that New Orleans City Councilman James Gray be disbarred or suspended at least three years for violating the rules of professional conduct in four cases he handled in private practice. Gray exhibited a "pattern of behavior" in which he "failed to provide competent representation, failed to act with reasonable... Full story »

March 26, 2014, 10:43AM

A committee with the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommended March 25 that Councilman James Gray be disbarred or suspended a minimum of three years for violating the rules of professional conduct in four cases he handled in private practice. Gray exhibited a "pattern of behavior" in which he "failed to provide competent representation, failed to act with reasonable diligence... Full story »

February 01, 2014, 10:41PM

Councilman James Gray fought off a challenge Saturday from longtime District E representative Cynthia Willard-Lewis to hold on to his New Orleans City Council seat for what will be his first full term. Andre Kelly was a distant third. Throughout the campaign, Willard-Lewis touted her experience representing eastern New Orleans and the Lower 9th Ward from 2000 to 2010, highlighting... Full story »

January 21, 2014, 4:50PM

The race for the New Orleans City Council's District E seat has been described by some as a battle between two incumbents, the current occupant, Councilman James Gray, 67, and Cynthia Willard-Lewis, 60, who represented the district for 10 years before a brief stint in the state Senate. The two nearly went head-to-head in 2012 when former Councilman Jon... Full story »

September 17, 2013, 4:20PM

The attorney prosecuting James Gray for alleged ethics violations has laid out her case as to why the New Orleans City Council member should lose his law license for a year and a day. In a memo filed Friday with the state agency that polices attorneys' conduct, the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board, Yolanda Cezar of the Office of Disciplinary... Full story »

September 07, 2013, 6:02AM

City Councilman James Gray pulled an apron over his immaculate white shirt and perfectly knotted tie Thursday and waited on customers during the noon rush hour at Li'l Dizzy's Cafe on Esplanade Avenue. The purpose: to call attention to the low wages paid to many restaurant servers. Gray was among prominent people in various U.S. cities who agreed to be... Full story »

August 14, 2013, 8:36PM

Facing a slew of ethics charges before a committee that could play a major role in deciding his future as an attorney, New Orleans City Councilman James Gray endured a third and final day of testimony Wednesday in his fight to keep his law license. The complex case is now in the hands of the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board,... Full story »

June 27, 2013, 6:59PM

New Orleans City Councilman James Gray is facing several charges that he misrepresented or overbilled at least four different clients between 2003 and 2011 while working as a private attorney. The oversight agency for lawyers in Louisiana, the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, quietly filed formal charges against Gray on Aug. 14, 2012 -- a day before he qualified to... Full story »